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Marathon Challenge
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Viewing Ideas
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Before Watching
To give students an appreciation for
a marathon distance, have them plot on a map the route for a marathon race in
your area. If there is no local marathon, have them find a route from the
school to a location that is 26.2 miles away, or determine how many laps around
the school would equal that distance. Organize students into four groups
and assign each group one of the following topics to take notes on as they
watch: tests done to measure body fitness, the training regimen, changes in the
runners' bodies over the training period, and the physical and mental
challenges the runners faced. While viewing, pause the program after the
initial introductions, the five-mile run, the ten-mile run, and the twenty-mile
run and ask students to predict who they think will succeed and why.
After Watching
Have each group report what it
learned while watching. As a class, discuss what it takes physically and
mentally to run a marathon. What do students think the most difficult challenge
was? What happened to the runners' bodies as they became more physically
fit? Did students' expectations of who would succeed match the final
results? What surprised students the most regarding how the runners fared? Ask students to list what inspired
the runners to train for and complete the marathon and what obstacles they
faced. Could students identify with any of the participants? What inspires
students to exercise or prevents them from exercising? Brainstorm with students
ways they might overcome some of their obstacles.
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